PROTECTING YOUR BACK IN THIS ECONOMY

Wondering where I’ve been the last few days?

Studying.

For years, I have had several businesses. If you read the latest job reports today you will see why.

Because you cannot rely one source of income anymore.

I was studying for my real estate broker renewal test. Not easy. 150 questions. (How much do you know about anti-trust law?) Took the test. Passed. I am good for two years. It costs money to take the test, for renewal fees, Realtor dues and for subscription to the Multiple Listing Service. It is not cheap. Real money.

Have I been selling real estate? Nope. Not one sale in the last year.

But when the good times were rolling a couple of years ago, I sold five million dollars of real estate in a year.

Sure, there are a lot of lookers out there. But there is a catch. Everyone who has contacted me has a house to sell before they can buy. And there is almost a year of inventory of unsold houses out there. Most sellers are not lowering their prices. They are living in the past of la-la land. The “sucker born every minute” is not showing up.

So it comes under the category of trying to race a three legged horse. When you can’t win you get out of the race. Not forever. Just until you get a new horse. It hurts to put out money when nothing is coming in but it is also hard to get a brokers license. You can’t afford to let your certifications lapse. This is America. Things will improve.

In the meantime, I have a life coach practice, my resume and cover letter business has picked up, doing some travel agency work, consulting with authors on how to do interviews, writing an e-book on sales and of course having fun blogging. Who knows? Could even make something on my blog one day.

I have, what I always suggest to you, multiple streams of income. Money is coming in from different sources. The bills are being paid.

It was easier years ago. The days of what I refer to as the “gas company mentality” are over. People no longer work for the same company for 40 years, collect a gold watch, a retirement dinner and a pension. So we have to change too. Many of you did choose a profession and you are working in it now. You didn’t know what else to do. It was a job based on your college major perhaps. It may not be want you really want. But what we all tend to do is wait. Maybe it will get better. Maybe I’ll get an offer from a new company. Maybe I’ll get a raise or a great new client. I have a lot invested here. Time. Money. Loans. Health benefits. I have credit card debt. I have a mortgage. Kids. College costs looming.

In the meantime, the companies that we have declared allegiance to may not always be so loyal to us. You’ve heard the words. Downsizing. Outsourcing. Eliminating or combining a position. Fancy new words for being fired. A Harvard MBA half your age comes in and changes the whole company. You have new quotas. You make your quota and they raise it. New standards. Zero tolerance. Conform. Produce. Learn that new software. Or you’re out.

And you are out at 50 years old. Not 30. A challenge to get a new job or switch fields.

If you are not already doing it, you will be protecting your own back if you start a few small businesses. Begin with one. You have many talents. Talent is rare. It can be sold.

You have learned a lot from the time you worked in McDonald’s as a kid. Nothing is lost. Every one of those abilities is transferrable to another area where you can bring in some income.

So, stop looking at the stock market and despairing about the job reports and the economy. Even if you have a good job, you are worrying.

As Nike says, “Just Do It!” Put your thinking in gear and get going on a new profession. Do some brainstorming with a smart friend. Maybe join one of them in a new venture. There may be no one out there who has got your back covered.

Protect your own back.